First, make the ferment. Place the flour in a bowl. Crumble the yeast into it by rubbing it between your fingertips. Whisk I the milk until the ferment is thick.
Leave for at least 2 hours at room temperature and out of draughts, by which time it will become bubbly.
Using a mixer with a dough hook, beat the ferment with all the batter ingredients until the mixture is strong, elastic and stretchy.
Grease the moulds heavily with butter.
I find it easiest to pipe the mixture into the moulds, but if you don’t want to do this, you can just moisten your hands with water then scoop out small pieces of the batter with your fingers and drop them into the moulds. Either way, fill the moulds two thirds full.
Leave the moulds in a warm place for about 40-50 minutes until the mixture has risen about 1cm above the rims of the moulds.
Preheat the oven to 190°C/gas 5.
For the syrup, first take off the orange and lemon peel in long, thin strips (ideally use a julienne peeler; or use a vegetable peeler and then cut the strips into thinner lengths) then put into a pan. Squeeze the juice and add to the pan, along with the sugar and water. Bring to the boil then turn down the heat and simmer for about 5-10 minutes until it thickens slightly into a syrup. Take off the heat, add the rum and allow to cool until just warm, then pour into a dish wide enough to hold the babas.
Meanwhile, bake the babas in a preheated oven for about 15-20 minutes until they are golden and have risen up like champagne corks. Carefully turn each one out of its mould and cool on a wire rack (at this point you can freeze any that you don’t want to use immediately).
Put the babas into the syrup, turning them to coat really well, and leave for 2-3 hours at room temperature so that they soak up as much syrup as possible. Very gently prod them every so often and when they feel soft, they are ready.
Place each baba into a glass bowl or small dish. Scoop out some of the strips of peel from the syrup – a pair of kitchen tweezers is ideal for this – and curl on top of each baba. Spoon a little of the syrup around and serve with some whipped cream.
First, make the ferment. Place the flour in a bowl. Crumble the yeast into it by rubbing it between your fingertips. Whisk I the milk until the ferment is thick.
Leave for at least 2 hours at room temperature and out of draughts, by which time it will become bubbly.
Using a mixer with a dough hook, beat the ferment with all the batter ingredients until the mixture is strong, elastic and stretchy.
Grease the moulds heavily with butter.
I find it easiest to pipe the mixture into the moulds, but if you don’t want to do this, you can just moisten your hands with water then scoop out small pieces of the batter with your fingers and drop them into the moulds. Either way, fill the moulds two thirds full.
Leave the moulds in a warm place for about 40-50 minutes until the mixture has risen about 1cm above the rims of the moulds.
Preheat the oven to 190°C/gas 5.
For the syrup, first take off the orange and lemon peel in long, thin strips (ideally use a julienne peeler; or use a vegetable peeler and then cut the strips into thinner lengths) then put into a pan. Squeeze the juice and add to the pan, along with the sugar and water. Bring to the boil then turn down the heat and simmer for about 5-10 minutes until it thickens slightly into a syrup. Take off the heat, add the rum and allow to cool until just warm, then pour into a dish wide enough to hold the babas.
Meanwhile, bake the babas in a preheated oven for about 15-20 minutes until they are golden and have risen up like champagne corks. Carefully turn each one out of its mould and cool on a wire rack (at this point you can freeze any that you don’t want to use immediately).
Put the babas into the syrup, turning them to coat really well, and leave for 2-3 hours at room temperature so that they soak up as much syrup as possible. Very gently prod them every so often and when they feel soft, they are ready.
Place each baba into a glass bowl or small dish. Scoop out some of the strips of peel from the syrup – a pair of kitchen tweezers is ideal for this – and curl on top of each baba. Spoon a little of the syrup around and serve with some whipped cream.
